Judge denies halt on poultry waste
By Jim Stafford Business Writer
The state of Oklahoma's bid for an injunction to halt the spread of poultry manure inside the Illinois River Watershed has been denied by a federal judge in Tulsa.
Judge Gregory K. Frizzell of the Northern District of Oklahoma, issued a ruling Monday that the state had not met its burden of proof that bacteria in the waters of the Northeastern Oklahoma watershed are caused by the application of poultry litter rather than by other sources.
"The evidence produced to this Court reflects that fecal bacteria in the waters of the IRW come from a number of sources, including cattle, manure and human waste from growing number of human septic systems in that area's karst topography,” Frizzell wrote in the conclusion of a 10-page ruling. Read More
This case was originally brought to court in February of this year and the judge has finally issued his ruling to continue allowing farmers in this area to use poultry litter as fertilizer. Oklahoma’s Attorney General seems to have it out for poultry farmers as he is pursuing other lawsuits against poultry producers, but for now he has still been unsuccessful.
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